Deil-Amen and Rosenbaum (2004) showed how colleges that serve disadvantaged students work to build relationships of trust to increase the value recognized. They described the factors that come into play that lead to credentials that legitimately signal one’s qualifications. The paper presented the methods of relying on a college charter or participating in charter building to enhance the validity and legitimacy of the claims made by credentials. This offers insights for consideration with regard to the claims made by digital badges.

Regardless of where you start, it’s more than likely you’ll end up somewhere other than your intended destination. That’s okay. Systems are living things, and your badge system needs to be flexible. You must embrace a bit of chaos in its design.
-Carla Casilli, Director of Design + Practice at the Badge Alliance